Southern Indiana once had tens of thousands of
acres of bald cypress trees, but farming and river dams
have taken their toll. Twin Swamps Nature Preserve was set
aside in 1987 to help save one of Indiana's
last stands of bald cypress. These trees, relatives of the
ancient redwoods and sequoias of California,
are common in southern swamps along the Gulf Coast and the
Lower Mississippi, but they reach
their northern limit here, not far from the Wabash River in
Indiana.

Bald cypress trees love the water. Their buttressed bases
help them stand tall in the muddy soil. These are coniferous
trees, but they're not evergreen. The soft, feathery needles
turn brown and drop off in the fall.

The unusual "knees" of the bald cypress are distinctive.
The roots send up knobby extensions that protrude from the
water, sometimes taking odd shapes. (I call this pair "the
king and the queen.")

Here's a closer look at the base of a cypress and a group
of knees. One theory suggests that the knees extend into the
air to help get oxygen to the roots. Pale green duckweed is
covering the surface of the water.